Black and White
by SecondtoNon
Summary: The lines have been blured. The clock is ticking. All unbeknownst to the tenth squad captain. Unless he puts the pieces together Sereitei will have more worry than just three measly traitors. Even if he gets it in time will all be saved? Or be for naught?
1. Blur in Between

**-sigh- I'm pitiful. I've decided to discontinue my other story _Fear in Mind _for now. Real sad really since I only had two chapters left and I had already finished half of the third. I'm not having writer's block or anything but it's just too hard and I'm not really liking the way that the story is going. When - not if - I start it again, I'll probably end up rewriting the half of the second chapter.**

**This is just one of the two stories that I'm writing now. The other one will be posted sometime later this week. This was originally two seperate stories, but after thinking it over, neither of them made sense on its own so I combined the two. I'm really happy about the way it's going so far so hope you enjoy and... Review!

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**Black and White**

Chapter 1: Blur in Between

* * *

"_Massacre! Execution!"_

"_Do you have anything to say in your defense?"_

"…_No…"_

--_-_

"_You knew all along, didn't you?"__

* * *

_

His heart was racing.

_That reiatsu…_

He didn't think that he had ever gone that fast before.

_It can't be…_

His feet didn't even touch the tiles before it was off again.

_That bastard._

He was too focused on what was before him.

"_Aizen_…" he growled.

Sure enough, standing in front of him was none other than the traitor himself. A nonchalant expression was plastered on his face, one that did not seem to befit the situation.

"My, Hitsugaya-kun, you must have really missed me," he said, the same uncaring tone in his voice. "You've easily picked up my reiatsu and arrived a lot faster than I expected." He grinned, "Truly the incarnation of a heavenly being said to come down once every thousand year—"

"Cut the crap," spat Hitsugaya. "What's your purpose here?"

Aizen chuckled in response. "Wouldn't that be obvious Hitsugaya-kun—haven't you noticed? Me, being one of the most wanted traitors of Soul Society, and yet there isn't another shinigami in sight?"

Then it hit him – Aizen was right. He had been so focused on tracking his reiatsu that he hadn't noticed. Surely the alarms would have sounded by now.

Kyoka Suigetsu must have masked his reiatsu from everyone else but him.

He cursed. It was a bloody trap.

"Fine," he said. "What do you want from me?"

His question seemed to disappoint the man as he shook his head. "Hitsugaya-kun, it shouldn't be that hard, now, should it? You are a prodigy after all."

**Clang**

"Well now, it seems that you have gotten better since the last time we fought," he remarked. Hitsugaya's zanpakutou parrying the blow that was meant for his back. "But I would rather get this done as soon as possible."

A bright flash of light caught him off guard. His head hit a wall as he was propelled by a massive wave of energy.

Hitsugaya felt himself losing consciousness, but before he could fall into the darkness that was beckoning him, a hand clasped around his neck, threatening to deprive him of oxygen should he decide to struggle, and pinned him to the wall. A small, circular object was held in front of him.

His eyes widened and he gasped.

_The Hongyouku…_

"What I want, Hitsugaya-kun… is power."

His world blacked out before he could even feel the pain.

"_And you're going to deliver it to me…"_

---

"Taichou…" a soft voice called, poking a small bundle. "Taichou…"

The small bundle of white (though you really couldn't tell with all the other 'whites') stirred slightly but made no response of waking up. A low moan came from the bundle, further disproving of getting up.

"Taichou," Matsumoto repeated, poking harder this time, "wake up already!"

This time, it proved fruitful. Another moan was heard before a turf of white hair poked out from behind the large stacks of paperwork followed by a pair of groggy, teal eyes.

"What… Matsumoto…?"

"Taichou," Matsumoto pouted, "didn't you hear what I said?"

Hitsugaya scoffed. "Matsumoto, I have paperwork to do because a certain _someone_ is too lazy too. So unless you get your lazy butt going and actually do something productive, I have no interest in whatever you say."

"Well anyway," she continued, ignoring the glares her captain was giving her, "Rukia-chan, invited Abarai-kun, who invited Ikkaku and Yumichika, who in turn invited me to go with them on a mission to the Living World. So that means that you'll be coming too Taichou! You know, I can't wait to go shopping! Everything's going to be _so _cheap there…"

Hitsugaya tuned Matsumoto out. He didn't need to hear about all the human world clothing that she was going to buy and all the things that she was going to do when she got there, especially when his mind was still too foggy to comprehend everything. He was more preoccupied with the stacks of paperwork at hand which had suspiciously gotten taller while he was asleep.

Suddenly, all cloudiness disappeared when something clicked in the prodigy's mind.

"MATSUMOTO!"

But she was already gone.


	2. Arrival

**Second chapter! And another short one as well. As the story progresses the chapters will get longer so just please bare with it for now. Oh, I also forgot the disclaimer on the first chapter so…**

**Disclaimer: Don't own Bleach.

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**Black and White**

Chapter 2: Arrival

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"_Taichou!"_

"_Matsumoto, stay back!"

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_

Least to say the young prodigy of the tenth was not pleased. Introductions and being eyed by dozens of pairs of eyes was not something he liked. And by ignorant humans no less. So just being "not pleased" could not even begin to describe his mood right now.

"Class, we have a new student today!"

No. He was down right pissed.

"Now Hitsugaya-san, would you please introduce yourself?" she asked, oblivious to the fact that she had already done so.

He made a mental note to get revenge on a certain busty lieutenant later on.

"Hai…" was his dull reply. Though he was completely miffed on the inside, his outer appearance showed of nonchalance and boredom.

"My name is Hitsugaya Toushirou. Please to meet you," and he made a mock bow.

And immediately the class began to whisper among themselves.

"His hair's white!" one stated.

"Check out the eyes!" another said.

"Isn't he too young to be here?" someone asked.

"Ha! A chibi like him is going to be in our class? Please, gimme a break."

Hitsugaya twitched in annoyance. All too familiar of all this was he. What he hadn't expected was when he looked up, Kurosaki was staring at him.

He had expected this of course. Their arrival was unannounced. Just wait until he saw who else was here.

But the stare that the substitute shinigami was giving him was not of shock or surprise, rather it was of confusion. Confusion of what, he did not know. Though it certainly did not involve his unexpected arrival.

Finally noticing that he was being stared back, Kurosaki looked away.

* * *

The rest of the morning had gone had gone fairly smoothly. Hitsugaya zoned out on most of the lesson to contemplate on other things. Besides if there was anything more boring, it had to be learning the same things over again. The sensei had occasionally asked him a few questions, but after answering all of them perfectly, she hadn't bothered him again.

He had caught Ichigo glancing at him several times but he had turned away before he could fully catch him. After a while, he stopped, so Hitsugaya let it go.

When lunch finally arrived, everyone had assembled on the roof top of the school. Sure enough, Ichigo had lost all brain function when he saw the others, even when Rukia had informed him beforehand.

It was only when everybody had finally settled down, and began eating their lunch or was chatting amiably, that Hitsugaya caught the human staring at him again. This time he didn't let it go as easily.

"Oi, Kurosaki," Hitsugaya whispered harshly, just low enough so that nobody else would hear. "Is there something wrong?"

"Oh, sorry…" Ichigo sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "It's just that…there—there's something different about you."

"Different?" Hitsugaya's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"I—I'm not sure actually. It's just that—well…" Ichigo trailed off, unsure of how to word it.

"Forget it," he finished. "It's probably nothing."

---

"Oi, you're back! So, do we have another one joining us?"

"Can't tell, I'll have ta' getta' closer look ta' make sure."

"And just how do you expect to do that?"

"Don't worry; I've got it all thought out."

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_Bright…_

_That was the only word to describe it. Either because of the blinding light or vast white emptiness, there was nothing in sight. Whispers were heard coming from seemingly nowhere, getting louder and louder until distinct voices were audible._

"_Kill him!" a man yelled._

"_It was a massacre!" a woman cried._

"_Send him to execution!" they all shouted._

_The sound of a hammer hitting wood immediately hushed the voices. A humanoid figure was seen, the front facing the other way. All that could be made out was the figure seemed to be restrained; anything else was shadowed by the light._

"_Silence!" a voice ordered; an older voice. "You are brought here today to be charged for high treason – mass killing of the innocent, rebellion of the court, and attempted assassination of the King himself. Do you have anything to say in your defense?"_

"…_No…" the figure replied._

"_Very well… You shall be executed tomorrow at dawn, and your soul shall be cast down to the mortal realm. Guards! Take him away!"_

_The last thing he saw was the figure grin.

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_

To Be Continued…

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**I don't know why but I always seem to forget to say these things on the first chapter. This story is AU-ish so some things are changed in the story such as the timeline, which shall take place closer to winter (maybe near end of November. Let's just say the Bounto arc took place the entire time in between). Ichigo has already started his training as a Vizard for a while now, and the incident with Ulquiorra and Yammy never happened. There are also some changes to certain events but those will be revealed later on. Hmm… I think that should be all. Next chapter will probably be longer but no guarantees (but it won't be shorter). 'Til then, reviews appreciated!**


	3. First Sign Dreams

**Finally, chapter 3! Sorry for the really, **_**really, **_**slow updates. I finally finished my stupid geography essay (Geography, I love you very much, but this year you suck!) and handed it in. I should be able to work on my Fanfictions more now because of that (but then again, we just recently got two more projects dumped on us, geography – again – and science). I also seem to have a habit of jumping chapters and typing those instead. I wrote half of chapter 4 and the epilogue before this… Oh well.**

**Disclaimer: Are there such things as flying pigs? No. So what makes you think I own Bleach? There will never be flying pigs and I will never own Bleach.

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**Black and White**

Chapter 3: First Sign – Dreams

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"_Ya' planned tha' all along didn't cha'?"_

"_My… what makes you say that?"

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_

Cries…

"_Somebody help me!"_

Screams…

"_Please, have mercy!" _

Blood…

"_No—no… NOOO!!!"_

Laughter…

A grin.

"_The clock is ticking, boy, and your time is UP!"_

---

"Taichou! Taichou, wake up!"

Hitsugaya awoke in cold sweat, panting heavily. His face was ghostly pale, and his knuckles had turned white from clenching his hands so much. Matsumoto knelt beside him, a worried expression on her face. So many thoughts were racing though her mind, but she knew her first priority was to calm her captain down.

When she had wakened this morning, Matsumoto had found her captain missing. His reiatsu had been fluctuating dangerously from high to low, to even higher and lower, causing her to become agitated and start searching for her captain. Agitation was replaced with distress and fear when she found him on the roof. The surfaces around him were covered in sheets of ice and frost along with him like a frozen blanket, pieces breaking off every time he unconsciously moved. The young captain's face was contorted to such an extent that Matsumoto was almost sure that the skin was being stretched to its limits.

They stayed on the roof until color returned to the pale face, neither of them dared to break the silence with their voice. The frost and ice melted into pools of water as the temperature began to rise and the reiatsu stopped fluctuating. Hitsugaya was to first to get up, brushing any remaining ice off him, and started heading towards the stairs.

Matsumoto followed suit, finally gaining to courage she asked, "Taichou, what happened?"

Hitsugaya didn't reply, only sparing her a quick glance before heading down, but that one glance gave her all the answer she needed.

_I don't know.

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_

They had been staying in the Living World for almost a week now and things had been pretty much uneventful. Not a single attack had taken place yet, not even the lowliest of hollows preying on the poor souls of the recently deceased. Madarame started getting pissed the third day of their arrival, complaining that he had come to fight powerful hollows, not to do school work.

Hitsugaya couldn't complain. He knew that having no hollows attacking was a good thing, but even he was getting bored. The dullness was also starting to make him feel uneasy. He couldn't help but to wonder what Aizen was planning. The calm before the storm, they would say.

School went by swiftly as it had for the other days. When the last bell rang, Hitsugaya exited the building quickly, not even bothering to wait for the others. He wanted peace; time for himself to sort out his mind. With Matsumoto around he would never have that, but at least he could have some for now until she found him. He wandered around aimlessly, heading nowhere in particular.

His mind eventually wandered as well, thinking back to his dream. He didn't remember much, but what he did was etched into his mind. The images were so vivid with such lividity, that he felt it was actually real…

From the fire raging from everywhere around.

_Toushirou…_

To the heavy scent of blood and burning carcasses.

_Toushirou…_

The feeling of cutting though flesh and bone with nothing but pure bloodlust.

_Toushirou…_

And the piercing screams of those who were soon to be silenced.

_TOUSHIROOOUUU!!!!!!!!!!!!_

---

"Boy, would you like your fortune to be told?"

Hitsugaya was snapped out of his thoughts. He had been so lost in thought that he hadn't even paid attention to where he was going. Looking around, he seemed to be in some sort of entertainment district. The voice came from a figure, sitting behind a stand with a crystal ball in front.

The sight struck him as odd. The small stand was barely noticeable, wedged between two large buildings. And if the stand wasn't shady enough, the figure definitely was. Even the sharp eyes of the prodigy could not tell whether the figure was a man or a woman, wrapped from head to toe in a long robe. The only hint of the person's gender was the voice which sounded oddly like a man's disguised as woman's.

"I'm only going to ask one more time boy, do you want your fortune told or not?"

Apparently the person was also short tempered… and did the voice just sound more like a man's?

"I'm not interested. Excuse me." Hitsugaya resumed walking.

"Wait!" the fortune teller called, the voice sounding distinctly like a man's. "I-I sense something umm…" A hand was put over the teller's forehead for emphasis. "Death! That's it. I sense death coming from you!"

That immediately halted the white-haired shinigami. He stood there for a moment, repeating the words in his mind, checking to make sure whether he had heard "from" or "to". If the teller had said "to", then he could just dismiss it as a cheap shot from a fake, trying to get his attention by making false prophecies of a death that would never come. If he had said "from", then that was something entirely different.

Alas, it was the latter.

"Come boy," a finger bided him over, "and have your fortune told…"

Reluctantly, the shinigami captain complied. The corners of the fortune teller's lips were drawn into a smile, as eyes searched into the crystal ball for answers. The curves of the crystal created a warped and inverted reflection of the young captain.

"Yes, I sense the aura of death from you and a great darkness residing within…"

---

**Beep. Beep. Beep.**

"Uh, kid? Your phone's ringing."

Hitsugaya snapped his head towards the teller, a wave of dizziness hit from the sudden movement. Holding his head to prevent his vision from spinning, he pulled out his phone and flipped it open.

The young captain felt like he was going to become color blind, seeing all the blinking dots which signaled the location of hollows. Just how did so many appear at one time when there hadn't been a single attack before? Hollows weren't known to hunt in packs. Somewhere along his thoughts, Aizen came across his mind. That bastard's name seemed to be written all over this.

Whatever the reason may be, taking care of the hollows came first. Jamming the device back into his pocket, he quickly broke off into a run; leaving a smirking fortune teller behind.

_Well, this is interesting.

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_

**Smack!**

"Ouch! What the heck was tha' supposed ta' be for?"

"For being an idiot, that's what!"

"Woah, chill, I know tha' brat forgot ta' pay, but that ain't anything ya' have ta' get so mad about."

**Smack!**

"Not that Shinji! Dressing up as a fortune teller? Just what kind of freakin' idea is that? Couldn't you have done it the way you regularly do it?"

"Damn, ya' didn't have ta' hit tha' hard… great now there gonna' be big bruises tomorrow. And wha'da ya' expect me ta' do? Just walk up ta' some shinigami captain – as short as he is – and say 'Hi! I'm a vizard and I think ya' one too—Oh by the way, me and the rest of the people are staying here as well,' and just totally blow our cover!?"

"Fine, but why a fortune… Ah, forget! So what's the verdict?"

"Tha' wha'?"

"Idiot! Is he one of us or not!"

"Hey, ya' don't have ta' shake me… Better. And no."

"…No?"

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To Be Continued…

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**And there's the end of Chapter 3. Yeah, I know things seem to being going a bit slow, and the chapters are short but at least this one is a bit longer. Things will also pick up more, if not next chapter, then definitely the chapter after that. Though there isn't much action in here, there are important hints and clues of what's happening and what things are to come. I'm basically setting things up here for later on, but they aren't really filler chapters.**

**Anyways, reviews are appreciated! I always like to know what my readers think. Just don't ask about the fortune teller thing. I know it's weird. I'm also looking for suggestions and ideas on two blank chapters that I have to fill in. It's while they are still in the Living World, so I'm open to whatever ideas.**


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